Firecat
by Glaurung II
Summary: Test Materia equal to disaster... or not. That's what Genesis is about to learn.


**Disclaimer:** I don't own anything involved with Final Fantasy, only this silly story is from my invention.

FFVII and all names related to it are property of Square-Enix.

The Hobbit is property of the Tolkien family.

**xxxxXX-0-XXxxxx**

One of the things Genesis hated about testing new Materia was that he couldn't skip those sessions. Of course the big wigs at Shinra insisted on using First Class SOLDIERs to carry out with these missions, since they were the most qualified and the most skillful with the use of magic.

But, why they always picked the ones that backfired?

After one of those sessions, poor Angeal slept during a whole week due to an extra-potent Sleep Spell and Sephiroth's mane avoided miraculously a powerful Fire Spell. His coat had less luck and burnt to ashes, leaving the poor man only with his boots and trousers. Needless to say that he caused quite the commotion among the feminine staff (and part of the masculine) when he had to go to his apartment so scantly dressed. As for Genesis himself, he had to deal with the worst Ice Spell he had ever seen or, more concrete, feel.

While the three men waited outside the security room prepared for the experiments, none of them spoke a word. Even the always stoic Sephiroth seemed unnerved and tapped the floor with one foot. He himself felt a little queasy for the first time in years. He should have eaten something for breakfast but, as usual, he had overslept and didn't have time for it. He should really quit staying up so late, reading Loveless.

The door swished open and a lean man in a pristine lab coat appeared. He carried a clipboard with him and with a nasal voice told them that they could enter. As always, he wondered why they couldn't be greeted by a pretty girl for a change. He once voiced that protest in front of their friends.

"_Pretty girls__ normally don't get into jobs in which their beauty is not appreciated"_ said Angeal. _"Of course there are exceptions but, since it's easier for a beautiful woman to get into other jobs that are better paid and respected…"_

"_Respected?"_

"_Think about an actress"_ said Sephiroth. _"Who do you respect more? A scientist who pokes you with needles and address you like you were just an animal, or someone who entertains you? Both work hard, but the results of the former are more pleasant for you."_

Of course they had a point, but he still wanted to see a pretty face while he was examined. The only beautiful woman who was intelligent enough to be considered almost a genius around there was Scarlet, and she was nothing but a sadistic bitch. He couldn't stand the way she looked at him and Sephiroth when they were at a meeting. And her long hands were the reason why both he and Sephiroth had to cover their rears with long coats.

The room looked like the ones used for holographic training, with the difference of a large window above them to record all their movements. The experimental Materias were near the entrance, and each one was labeled with their names.

Soon the tests began with Angeal. He had a red orb assigned. Both Sephiroth and Genesis readied their swords, just in case their friend needed them.

As the raven haired man lifted the sphere and concentrated his energy on it, ruby light emanated from his hand.

Then nothing.

When the orb's light disappeared, a voice could be heard from the speaker connected to the observation room.

"Mr. Hewley, your orb is not functioning correctly. The lectures show that it's defective. You can return it to the table."

Next was Sephiroth. He had a green Materia.

"If this is another Fire Spell, I'll gut them right away" Genesis heard him mutter.

Fortunately for him it was just an ordinary ice Materia. He stepped back next to Genesis as he brushed off some frost on his coat.

The redhead had a yellow Materia. He prayed that it wasn't some Manipulate Materia. He shivered thinking about how Scarlet would enjoy having a new toy in her hands.

Genesis held his breath when the pale light surrounded him. He felt no changes at first and, thinking that his Materia was useless like Angeal's, relief invaded him. But one of Gaian Murphy's Laws is: _"If there's a slight, remote and improbable possibility that your spell backfires, it will backfire with all its potential."_

Only when he saw the world rising around him did he realize that it was not his day and he cursed whoever was that Murphy for being so damned right. The last thing he needed was to be in Mini status for Minerva knew how long. But his clothes seemed not to be affected by the spell, judging by the way they were covering him like a tent. Perfect, just perfect. Now he was going to be Mini _and_ naked. What else did he need?

He fought his way through the mess of clothes, leather and straps that was his attire. He wished he was as tolerant towards cold as Sephiroth was. Going out from just an unbuttoned leather coat would be way easier.

But when he got out at last, the air didn't seem so cold. Something he also noticed was that he felt different, way too different from before. He couldn't stand up and had to walk on his fours. He looked down at his body.

His _furry_ body.

He screamed. Though sounded almost human, his voice had changed too.

Two pairs of black boots approached him, then its owners kneeled and Genesis saw true concern in his friend's eyes.

**xxxxXX-0-XXxxxx**

A cat.

A cat. He had been morphed into a _cat_. And pets were strictly forbidden for Shinra's staff.

Genesis glared at the man clad in white in front of him. How the hell could he be so fascinated? Still, he was cautious enough not to touch him. An angry cat can be very dangerous, especially if said cat has a grudge against you.

Looking back at the computer screen, the lab rat continued talking in his nasal voice.

"The results are conclusive. You're a normal street cat."

"We can see that already" replied Sephiroth with mordacity.

"How long will he be like that?" asked Angeal.

"Its' difficult to say" stammered the scientist nervously. "Your Sleep Spell wore off after one week. I can only speculate. But," he added with a sparkle in his eyes. Coming from a scientist it was a sign that always made them shiver, "I'd suggest you to leave him here so we could study his case."

The man was about to scoop Genesis but a pair of black gloved hands was faster.

"I think we can take care of him" said Sephiroth. Genesis, for once, didn't utter a single protest when someone touched him.

"We'd only ask you for one thing" said Angeal as he grabbed Genesis' clothes from the bench where they were neatly folded. "Keep this a secret. We wouldn't like anyone to know that we could be transformed into cats."

"Yes, of course" replied the scientist as he shot furtive glances to Genesis. "Sure you don't want to leave him here? We will take good care of him."

"He lives outside the laboratory and, since he can't say a word right now we will take the liberty of deciding for him" said Sephiroth. "He's coming with us."

The priorities of the Scientific Department were always before anyone else's but just in this case said priorities could be forgotten, if it meant not having Masamune pointing at one's neck.

**xxxxXX-0-XXxxxx**

"Make yourself comfortable" said Sephiroth, "just don't scratch my couch."

Genesis looked back at him wearily before jumping to said couch and curling up in a corner. At least he didn't need much room to sleep.

Sephioth looked at the reddish fur ball that now was his friend. At least if his form was reverted at his apartment he could lend him some clothes. It repulsed him the thought of any of his friends being captive in a laboratory as if they were real animals.

Angeal had gone to Genesis' apartment to drop the redhead's clothes and his earrings. Both friends had to hide a snicker when they caught a glimpse of his underwear. Far for surprising them, it was amusing to see that Genesis's passion for the Dumbapples reached even his boxers. With a green background and a pattern of purple apples, they were rather cute. Of course they would never admit it, or Genesis would buy them a whole stock of underwear for each one.

"We will cover up for you until you recover" said Sephiroth and Genesis looked at him. "Now I must go. I think the cleaning lady has done her work already here, so you don't have to hide."

Genesis' only response was to curl up again, apparently ignoring him but, for the deep sigh he let go, Sephiroth knew he had relaxed completely. He smirked and exited his home without making noise.

Contrary to what Genesis could think about his current situation, being a cat wasn't so bad. His natural fur gave him the warmth that clothes would have provided; strangely, he felt more _natural_, like when he was just a boy, as if the Mako in his body had receded and, though a cat's mind was simpler than a human's one, he still retained his way of thinking, his _personality_, so to say. That was why he could understand what was being said to him, despite his inability to speak.

A sudden noise startled him. To his horror, when he opened his eyes he saw a woman dressed with the uniform of the cleaning staff.

"_Shit__!"_ he thought, _"Sephiroth was wrong!"_

The truth was that the silver haired SOLDIER hadn't been wrong. The cleaning lady had already done her work but she thought that she had forgotten something in one of the apartments and, since she didn't remember which one was, she began searching them one by one. Needless to say that Genesis wasn't the thing she had been looking for, but he was found anyway.

The woman went swiftly to grab him with a stern frown. Pets were strictly forbidden for the staff and there was no exception (Rufus Shinra didn't count as staff). Genesis leapt from the couch and ran as fast as his four paws would allow him to the opened door with the woman screaming right beside him.

"_Where the hell__ has women's love for cats gone?"_ Genesis thought bitterly as he ran blindly through the corridors.

His mad rush was cut out abruptly when he encountered a group of maintenance workers. They cornered and trapped him quicker than he'd wanted, but they didn't go out unharmed. He made sure to scratch any hand which came near him before he was lifted by the nape of his neck.

To sum it all, he was thrown out of the building. That was how he ended up in the street. He tried to stay as near as possible from the Shinra building but the guards chased after him when he attempted to sneak back inside.

He was terrified about the spell reverting in the street. His skin crawled, thinking about the embarrassment that would follow. He could never go outside again if that happened. So he tried to find a way to enter the building from behind, where the alleys were narrow and dark.

It was funny to think how much money Shinra spent cleaning and polishing the front of the building, but the back streets were quite depressing. They were narrow, damp, and only Minerva knew how they'd look at night. He tried to pass as fast as possible, seeking his way through the maze of streets. Soon he became utterly lost and had to stop, trying to recall his route.

He heard a sound behind him and a single thought passed through his feline mind. He turned his head and saw it.

It looked like a Nibel Wolf, showing all its very sharp teeth, raising its black fur and with its dark eyes full of bloodlust: the last thing a cat would like to encounter.

He cursed his luck as he was chased for the second time that day. He was as defenseless as a kid in diapers in front of a behemoth, and swore that if he could revert his form he was going to fry that beast.

Genesis ran and ran, feeling the jaws of the dog snapping right behind him. He made a sudden turn and entered through a half-opened door. The dog could only pass his muzzle through the aperture of the jammed door and there it stayed for a long time, barking and howling in frustration for the lost prey.

Trying to catch his breath and ignoring the ruckus the dog was making, he looked at his surroundings. He wasn't in a house. It looked more like an unused passage to the lower level than anything else and, seeing that was the only way was down, he followed the dimly illuminated stairs.

"_Where does this lead__? To the Planet's center?"_ he thought after he lost count of how many flights he had passed and the light of the half-opened door was a mere point in the distance.

So down and down he went, like in the fairy tale he used to read as a child. He only hoped that at the bottom there wasn't any strange creature living in a subterranean lagoon. He wasn't good with riddles in his current situation and he didn't want a gold ring as a reward. He had enough problems already.

But no lake was beyond the stairs: only a closed door and a broken window. He jumped with ease and slid through the last, avoiding the broken glass to look where he had landed.

He was in the slums. Not surprising, but not good either. Monsters crawled in some parts and maybe there were more street dogs. Still, even in the form of a cat, he was a SOLDIER and he had to survive.

So, cautiously but as fast as he could, he began to search for a shelter or a way to return to the upper plate. He avoided several encounters with monsters just by going at the upper part of the mountains of debris. Humans weren't a problem, for they didn't pay attention to him.

But dogs…

They could climb to where he was, as he could probate when a pack of three of these filthy beasts began to pursue him. The bastards had smelled him from afar and, though they didn't look as monstrous as the one he had encountered before, they still outnumbered him. So he was in a mad rush for his life for the third time in the same day. Quite a record in SOLDIER, though it wasn't one to be proud of.

He spotted an enormous building. It was totally out of place, for it was entirely made of stone and a big wooden gate was half opened, leaving enough space for him to pass.

With two leaps, Genesis climbed the stone stairs and slid through the crack, but the dogs stopped at the bottom, apparently not daring to enter there. After a brief time of doubt, they just turned around and went back where they came from.

It cost him a little more to catch his breath than the previous time, but at least he was secure. And he was in the last kind of building he expected to find in all Midgar.

Walls of stone, wooden roof and floor and benches neatly aligned: he was in a church.

But the most amazing thing was that in front of the neglected altar the floor disappeared and a bed of flowers covered the ground. Genesis approached them, puzzled because nothing grew in Midgar. They looked like lilies, though the form and the scent were slightly different. In fact, they smelled unlike any flower he knew. He playfully stroked one with a paw, and childhood memories came to him: all happy memories from his homeland.

He entered the bed of flowers and curled among them. He was soiled with mud, tired and hungry, and in that place he felt more than secure.

He felt al _home_.

**xxxxXX-0-XXxxxx**

"_Kitty?"_

A voice was calling him.

"_Kitty? Wake up!"_

He lazily opened his eyes. A figure clad in white was kneeled beside him. He looked up to see that it was a girl who was calling him.

"You woke up at last" she giggled. "I thought something happened to you."

Genesis sat up to see her better. The girl had chestnut hair gathered in a thick braid, big green eyes and a cute face. She looked quite young, but maybe it was because of the innocence of her smile.

"You have pretty eyes. I've never seen such color before" she said making Genesis nervous for no apparent reason. It was normal to hear from a girl that one had pretty eyes, at least among those who were enhanced with Mako.

He mewed softly and she smiled again, reaching carefully to stroke him. Of course Genesis didn't protest when she scratched him behind the ears. Instead, he purred like a normal cat would and let her pass her hand down his back.

"Want to come home with me?" she asked.

He mewed looking at her. She giggled again and scooped him in her arms despite the fact that he was dirty and could soil her dress. Such kindness was unexpected. He could do nothing but to behave as a normal cat, so he brushed his face against hers and purred to show his gratitude.

"Wow!" the girl said as she hugged him tighter. "Either you like me a lot or you can really understand me."

"_If only you knew…"_ was Genesis' thoughts as she continued stroking his neck.

**xxxxXX-0-XXxxxx**

"Mom, I'm home!" said the girl as she entered the small house.

"Aerith, what's that?" said her mother pointing at Genesis.

"I found him at the church. He's so sweet! Can I keep him?"

"Well, I'm not sure…"

That was the signal for Genesis to use his newly discovered weapon: his feline charm. He struggled with Aerith a little, so the girl would leave him on the floor. He approached her mother, mewling softly and looking at her face. Then he rubbed against her legs like any other cat and, last but not least, he sat in front of her, again looking at her straight in the eye and cocking his head in the most adorable way he could.

"All right" she sighed, though she was almost giggling. "He can stay. Gosh! It's like he could understand us! But first you should give him a bath, I'll finish the supper meanwhile."

"Ok, mum!" Aerith chirped as she scooped Genesis again.

"_Wait! Wait! Bathe? I can bathe alone!"_ were his desperate thoughts as he was carried to the bathroom. It was going to be a difficult situation, for he didn't want to struggle with her, but nor did he wanted to be touched in certain areas.

She closed the door after her and held him in her hands, in front of her.

"You have done it very well!" was her excited whisper. "You're a very smart cat."

And she kissed his nose.

The next thing he noticed was that he was already in the water and that she was spreading the shampoo over his fur. She must be using her own. He could see the bottle next to her: _Shinra Shampoo, Vanilla Scent_.

"_Sweet Minerva!__"_ he thought in dismay._ "Now I'm gonna smell like Sephiroth!"_

One thing he was grateful to Aerith was that she kept her hands far away from sensitive spots. It would have been very embarrassing for him if an innocent girl like her touched him in his feline form, totally oblivious of his true nature. Also, she washed him like she was just caressing him and for a moment he wished she was a bit rougher. It felt almost bad to feel so good, if that made sense.

Another thing he noticed was that she was a master with the hairdryer and the hairbrush.

"Someone looks pretty!" she chirped when she finished.

He looked in the mirror and saw a reddish fur ball in her arms. He looked like the cats wealthy ladies used to keep but, fortunately, his face wasn't flat and he still retained an elegant profile. His eyes had improved because they were bigger compared to the rest of the face and, though he would never admit it in front of Sephiroth, feline pupils worked better with Mako eyes.

"_And to think you __do it better than my barber"_ thought Genesis.

She kissed him on the cheek and carried him to the kitchen, where her mother was serving the supper. It smelled heavenly. At least the mother was a good cook.

"But Aerith!" said the woman. "Let him walk! Not even a day at home and you're already spoiling him!"

"Aw come on, mum. He's so soft I can't resist it" giggled the girl.

But she let him on the floor, where her mother had set a plate with minced meat. _Raw_ minced meat.

"Tomorrow I'll buy cat's food" said the woman. "I didn't know whether to give him some sardines or meat."

"Don't worry" commented Aerith, "cats eat just whatever they find."

"_Yeah, whatever"_ though Genesis, looking sourly at the meat in front of him.

He was a SOLDIER. He could endure anything.

He smelled it cautiously and, unlike he'd expected, that made his stomach grumble. He tasted it and found out that it was delicious. It was more than obvious that his sense of taste had changed too. Both mother and daughter smiled in delight seeing the animal wolfing the food.

"The poor thing" said the woman, "he must have been starving."

It was a tranquil supper, with no television and the two women chatting quietly about their daily worries. He made the meat disappear in a matter of a few seconds, and was still licking his whiskers when he heard Aerith saying something that made his ears prick:

"Mum, could you pass me that dumbapple?"

"_Don't beg"_ he scolded himself as he licked his paws stubbornly. _"You're no pet. You're a SOLDIER. You have pride."_

"Do you want some, kitty?" the girl asked.

And Genesis was at her feet (literally) to receive a slice of his favorite fruit. Of course he was not begging, she had offered it and it would have been very impolite to refuse such a kind gift from his benefactress.

When the women were cleaning away the kitchen someone knocked at the door and the older went to open it. Genesis heard her greeting someone but she didn't say a name. Then a man spoke:

"Good evening, Elmyra" said the man, his voice sounded terribly familiar to Genesis. "How's Aerith?"

Genesis poked his head out of the kitchen and spied the door. It was Tseng of the Turks. But before he could do anything Aerith came out to greet the visitor and he had to follow her. Elmyra returned to the kitchen, but he noted she was tense.

"Aerith", Tseng smiled. It was more than a courtesy smile. "I just wanted to check on you."

"Oh, thank you", she said timidly. "Really, you don't have to worry."

So she was being courted by a Turk. He tolerated Tseng because he was a good partner to work with, but the guy was so closed up that no one could know what he was thinking. Now he was beginning to openly dislike him.

As if the Turk sensed his murderous glare, he looked down to him.

"I found him this afternoon", Aerith said, scooping Genesis. "Poor thing was so hungry! And I'm still figuring out a name for him."

"I see", was his plain answer as he fixed his eyes upon him with a grim air. But that expression was gone as soon as it came and he was smiling again to her. "Could I stroke him?"

"Of course", said the girl.

But as Tseng stretched his hand, Genesis hissed menacingly, making Aerith jump.

"What's wrong?" she asked the cat and, when he rubbed his face against hers she laughed nervously, quite embarrassed. "I'm sorry, Tseng. I think he's just jealous."

"Yes, that may be", said the Turk with a polite smile that didn't reach his eyes when he looked again at Genesis. "Well, I'll see you, Aerith. I still have work to do. Good night."

"Good night, Tseng."

She closed the door quietly when the Turk left and returned to the kitchen.

"Why have you done it?" she asked sadly to him. "Tseng is a good man."

He felt sorry to have caused her distress, but he couldn't help it. Turks were dangerous and she was so young, so innocent…

"If you ask me, I'd say this cat is wiser than you", said Elmyra as she washed the dishes.

"Mom! Not you too!"

"Look, darling" she said softly, drying her hands and approaching her daughter. "Tseng works for Shinra. Remember what they did."

"I know", her eyes filled with tears. "But he could have abducted me already, and all he does is just visiting me."

Genesis mewled softly to break the tense silence. Aerith looked at him with a smile.

"Can't get angry with you, can I? You're so cute!" and she kissed his head.

He spent the remaining evening curled in Aerith's lap as she and Elmyra watched TV. He purred when she stroke him behind the ears, something that he didn't intend to do, but sometimes his new body seemed to act on his own accord.

"Now that I think of it", commented Elmyra, "where's he going to spend the night?"

"With me, of course", said Aerith. "I'll set him a bed in my room."

Elmyra replied nothing and Genesis wondered if she knew that cats didn't sleep at night but during the day. She sounded more like she didn't want to part her daughter from her pet, seeing how much love she was pouring on him.

So all was set and he had a nice bed in her room. It was an old basket padded with clothes, but it was all he needed. He curled up and closed his eyes before she began to undress, too embarrassed to even think about taking a peep. That wouldn't have been nice. He heard the rustling of blankets when she went to bed and the light went off at last.

"Good night", said Aerith.

He mewled back, making her snort. It would be a matter of time before she fell asleep.

When her breathing was deep and rhythmical enough, he got up and went to her bed. Genesis leapt with feline ease and walked cautiously to her side.

At repose she seemed even younger, her chestnut bangs framing her angelic face and pooling on the pillow. She stirred a little and snuggled more under the cover. He prayed for the spell to last long enough to return to Shinra's building without scaring the girl. And there was when he discovered a great problem: How was he going to return? Traveling wasn't the issue, it was Aerith. She had established bonds with him quite fast and he was sure that the separation would be painful for her. Not for him, for he was planning already to return to her side.

He saw women daily, but they were the kind of secretaries that were very used to do extra hours with their bosses, in a dirty way. All were artificial, used a lot of makeup and complicated hairdos. This girl was natural and so unlike any other woman he had met before. And seeing her in Midgar reminded him of an oasis in the middle of the desert, or how the fresh breeze felt in your face when you emerged from a deep cave.

Genesis curled at her side, not minding that she could roll over him, and fell asleep.

**xxxxXX-0-XXxxxx**

Slender, white arms encircled him.

Genesis opened his eyes, startled. She had taken her arms out of the covers and was embracing him as if he was a plushie. He could sense her warmth on his back and the soft rhythm of her breathing and her beating heart, even with the cover between them. He couldn't move without risking waking her up, so he had to stay there, basking in her warmth and her sweet scent.

Not that he minded, though.

It was six a.m. By that hour he, Angeal and Sephiroth used to have breakfast together before attending to their daily duties. He wondered how their friends were doing, if they were worried and searching for him. Not that he had to be rescued, but he preferred to be taken away rather than just going on his own. He needed that excuse, because he didn't have the heart to leave Aerith.

Such irony. Of the three friends, he was the one who took more pride on his bachelorhood, not prolonging things further from a one-night stand. Now he regretted having to be separated from her, even for a brief time, and no sex had been involved this time.

"_Infinite in mystery is the gift of the goddess"_ he quoted mentally without knowing really why that concrete quote spawned in his mind.

She stirred and yawned behind him. She was waking up.

"Good morning" the girl said, caressing his fur. "Did you sleep well, honey?"

He got up and stretched as lazily as only a cat could do, before sitting up and mewling back at her. She also sat up and picked him up, cradling him in her lap.

"I thought your bed was comfortable, but now I see I was wrong. Mum will say I'm spoiling you, but I don't care."

"_You're really spoiling me, girl"_ he thought.

She kissed his head again and let him go.

"Well, I have to take a shower. You wait here, ok?" she said as she jumped out from the bed. She was as energetic as Angeal in the morning.

As soon as the last fold of her nightgown disappeared through the door, he jumped to the window. He couldn't see the house's surroundings last night. He had more important things to worry about.

Surprisingly, they were located under a crack on the still in construction upper plate, so they could enjoy the little natural light that reached the place. A cascade ran behind the house: the result of an unused stream of water. It was said that Midgar sat above a subterranean lake. They were pumping out the water, but apparently there weren't enough infrastructures to use that water, so the remaining quantities returned to the ground.

Something moved. It was a black shadow behind a mount of debris. He looked more attentively and swore: it was a Turk. Not Tseng, that was for sure, but they were definitely watching the house.

"_I wonder if they are looking for me"_ he thought, but then he remembered the enigmatic words of Elmyra.

What on earth did they do to Aerith? And why her of all people? She looked so inoffensive. Her only special feature, aside from being very pretty, was that she was unnaturally naïve and kind.

He would protect her. Yes, that was the least he could do after she had been so kind to him.

Of course, he first had to get rid of his current situation.

**xxxxXX-0-XXxxxx**

"Bye, mom!" she waved her hand to Elmyra before closing the door behind her and going to the market, Genesis walking beside her.

Life in the slums wasn't so bad, or so it seemed at her side. It looked like everyone knew Aerith and had her in high esteem.

"_What's this girl?"_

Aerith went visiting several stalls and shops, running her mother's errands. The owner didn't notice him very often, but one of them did. It was a gentle old woman at an item store, with snowy hair gathered in a bun, and she seemed to like cats.

"Look what we have here!" she exclaimed when she saw him. Aerith scooped him in her arms so the woman could have a better view of him. It was a bit humiliating to be displayed like that, but then he remembered that his parents used to do that a lot when he was little.

"I found him yesterday" the girl explained as she kissed his head. "He's such a cutie, but also a bit jealous."

The old woman laughed.

"Cats choose their owners, not the other way around. Oh, but you're right, he's a beauty! Never have I seen such eyes", she paused for a moment and then went to the back of the store, her words losing in the distance. "I think I have something which would fit him just right."

After a rustle of boxes and a mild swearword the woman emerged from the backroom with something in her hands. Genesis' skin crawled in panic as he thought about the inevitable: him wearing a bell.

But, far from that, what the woman had in her hands wasn't a bell, but a plain ribbon. Not a magical one, just the kind of accessory girls used on their hair. It was of a bright aqua color, resembling his eyes.

"There" she said as she put it around his neck and then stepped back to admire him. "Not bad, right dear?"

"No, not bad at all" Aerith said. He would have killed for a mirror at that moment.

Though Aerith insisted on paying for it, the woman refused to take her money. It was a present for her. The girl thanked the old woman many times before going outside.

"_I hope__ I don't look too ridiculous",_ Genesis thought as he walked again by her side.

After the errands were done, they went to an apparently deserted playground. Aerith sat in one of the swings with him in her lap and there they stood for some time.

Life had never been so tranquil for him. Of course he missed to be human again, but he had no haste right now to do so.

"Excuse me, miss."

"_That voice…"_

Aerith got up from the swing, startled, and still hugging Genesis.

Of course he knew that voice.

It was Angeal who stood in front of them. He maybe sensed the girl's uneasiness and didn't approach much.

"Yes? What do you want?"

"My name is Angeal Hewley, may I ask you where you found that cat, please?"

Aerith didn't respond and hugged him tighter. Genesis was afraid that she would flee, mistaking Angeal for an enemy.

"Yesterday the President's wife lost her pet" the SOLDIER made up. Genesis could tell how painful it was for Angeal to lie to a girl like Aerith. "It happens that it was a cat just like the one you're holding in your arms."

"How do I know you're telling me the truth?" asked Aerith.

And now it came the painful moment for him. He struggled again with her so he could get to the ground and went mewling to Angeal. Then he looked back to her. The hurt in her eyes almost made his heart bleed.

She kneeled and he came to her lap once more so she could cradle him in her arms.

"I knew he was special" she said with a smile, though her voice trembled. She raised her eyes to look at Angeal. "Could have I some more time with him, please?"

"Of course. Take your time."

Good old Angeal walked away so they could have some privacy. Then she sat again in the swing and started to cry. Genesis couldn't do anything but to lick her tears as she giggled faintly.

"I won't forget you" she said sadly as she kissed his cheek for the last time. After that she wiped her tears and got up, striding firmly towards Angeal, who was with his back politely turned.

"Mr. Hewley" she called. "I'm… ready."

"I'm sorry to do this" said Angeal apologetically. He was truly sorry.

"No" she shook her head, "it's all right, if he's going to be fine."

"I promise they will take good care of him."

She nodded and handed Genesis over, though she was still sniffing.

"What's your name?" he asked.

"Aerith."

"Thank you, Aerith."

As Angeal went away, Genesis peeped over his shoulder to see her. She had run away, still wiping her tears. He couldn't prevent a sour mewl.

"I'm sorry, pal", said Angeal.

**xxxxXX-0-XXxxxx**

The redhead got out from his bedroom, glad that the spell wasn't meant to revert on its own, but casting a counter spell. His two friends were waiting for him in the living room.

"You had us worried" said Sephiroth when Genesis got out at last. "Sorry for the cleaning lady thing."

"Don't worry", he grinned. "It ended well, right?"

"If you say so", said Angeal.

"It's not finished yet", pointed Genesis. "I still got a thing to do."

"Sorry to disappoint you", Angeal interrupted. "Lazard wanted to send you to lead an investigation party in Wutai."

"Do you know what I think about last minute missions and Lazard's brilliant ideas?" asked the redhead, though his friends knew by heart the exact expression, which was unprintable. "Not going this time."

And with that he just walked out of his home, but before that he was careful enough to recover the aqua ribbon and the _Cat Materia_, how they had agreed to call the special orb.

**xxxxXX-0-XXxxxx**

Ok folks, there you have another strange pairing, Aerith and Genesis. I think she's so sweet that Genesis would have liked her if they had met.

Many thanks to nobuddy for her betareading and for correcting all my grammar and spelling ;)

And well, I don't know what else to say, except that this story was meant for Sephiroth, but I thought that I was already torturing the poor man in Memories, so I thought about Genesis and thought "Why not?". So there you have, non-yaoi Genesis' fans. Is this pairing decent enough? giggles

Oh, and I made a direct reference to The Hobbit, by Tolkien, one of my most beloved books.


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